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Patient killed by herbal drug
A DOCTOR has told an inquest her patient would be alive today if he had heeded warnings to stop chewing khat, a herbal stimulant favoured by the Somali community.
Khat chewing destroyed Ahmed Saeed’s liver, leading to his death in March this year, St Pancras Coroner’s Court heard on Tuesday.
Death as a direct result of chewing the popular East African drug is rare, according to doctors, who say there is almost no funding for the study of the medical impact of khat chewing.
Dr Marsha Morgan, a consultant physician at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead, told the inquest that doctors had pleaded with Mr Saeed, of Eversholt Street, Somers Town, to stop using the drug after he visited the hospital in July last year with abdominal pains.
Dr Morgan said: “Had Mr Saeed heeded our wishes, and we understand how hard that is, and not chewed khat after leaving the hospital the first time, he would still be alive today.” The 36-year-old, who had been chewing khat since 1996, returned to the hospital in February this year suffering from jaundice caused by a weakened liver.
Investigations into his suitability for a liver transplant revealed a heart condition, caused by chewing khat. Dr Morgan said: “His heart would never have held up during the transplant procedure.
“Mr Saeed had severe acute hepatitis which evolved to full liver failure caused by chewing khat used by the Yemen and Somali community because of its slightly euphoric effect.” She added: “Khat can cause insomnia, hallucinations, psychosis. It can affect the heart. We don’t know why it affects some users and not others.”
Mr Saeed’s brother-in-law, Mahadi Abdullahi, responded with disbelief to the coroner’s verdict of accidental death, saying: “But millions of people use khat and in this country it’s legal.”
Senior hepatology registrar Dr Mike Chapman said after the verdict that the Royal Free had successfully given transplants to two women suffering khat-induced liver failure.
He added: “There are very few documented cases where it causes liver disease. There won’t be more work into it because people won’t look into funding for khat use because there are cultural sensitivities and it’s so rare.”
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